Our Fourth Year

September 2014 – August 2015

See also our second year (September 2012 – August 2013) and our third year (September 2013 – August 2014)

August 2015

The round seat view point, upper path and steps beside Marine Lake weeded and swept

Nettle pulling from a former patch of scrub on Wain’s Hill ahead of tractor mowing

Hack’s Way weeded again and overhanging brambles trimmed back

Church Hill – invasive species at the zigzag path viewpoint such as hogweed, wild radish and willowherb are selectively removed by hand while a neighbouring patch is scythed

The grassy bank beside the green gate in St Andrew’s churchyard wall once again selectively weeded and scythed to promote the growth of fine grasses and wild flowers

Follow-up weeding at the start of the newly uncovered Wain’s Hill zigzag path

Wain’s Hill – removing regrown tree shoots and bramble from scrub first cleared in 2011

July 2015

Seats and coastal path given a thorough tidy, and brambles removed from the rock face

A woodland glade on Church Hill, first cleared of scrub in October 2013, is maintained by removing re-growth of bramble, feral raspberry, nettles and tree stump shoots

Trimming the hedge and re-cutting sycamore to maintain coastal views from seats

The annual ragwort pull took place this year on 16th July

Church Hill – sycamore control to restore a thicket and tidying of the zigzag continues

This view from Church Hill and access to the zigzag path are improved by scything

June 2015

Hack’s Way trimmed and weeded, and litter and overhanging vegetation cleared. The nearby formal path beside the Salthouse Flats weeded and swept

Church Hill – the grassy 1923 path trimmed

Scything on Wain’s Hill. Cut vegetation is allowed to dry for 3 days before raking off.

The newly reopened zigzag path leading to Wain’s Hill weeded and raked

Raking off scythed grass and weeds from Wain’s Hill ramparts

Summer scything starts on the Wain’s Hill ramparts (1st June)

May 2015

Wain’s Hill ‘Pill Box’ – pulling wild turnip, an invasive annual weed of agricultural land.

Wain’s Hill – after restoring this woodland path a myriad of sycamore seeds have germinated and need to be removed while still small enough to hand pull.

St Andrew’s church – the green gate grassy bank is scythed and raked and the path swept

Church Hill – invasive wild radish is controlled by scything and grubbing to allow grasses and less vigorous wild species to thrive. Cut material is raked off to reduce soil fertility.

April 2015

Disturbed ground beside Wain’s Hill zigzag path has been densely populated by sycamore seedlings, which will need to be removed to prevent competition with other plants

Weeding, tidying and sweeping steps and paths leading to Church Hill

Pulling feral raspberry shoots on the edge of Church Hill above Salthhouse Wood. Over-colonisation by docks and thistles in the nearby grassland is also controlled .

Litter picking around the site of a popular hideout in secondary woodland on Church Hill. And the downside of providing a seat at a fine viewing point – an elicit bonfire and litter!

Weeding and tidying a group of graves in St Andrew’s churchyard

Repairing a woodland step in Salthouse woods

Pulling goosegrass (cleavers) and grubbing out nettles on Hack’s Way (to Church Hill)

Grubbing out nettles by the path below woodland on the south east corner of Church Hill

March 2015

Clearing brambles from grassland at the edge of Wain’s Hill plateau

Tidying the seat and around the stone steps overlooking St Andrew’s churchyard

Weeding and tidying graves in St Andrew’s churchyard

Church Hill – path widening by cutting and tidying the edge

Removing over-vigorous species to improve the grassy bank beside St Andrew’s Church

Church Hill – scrub control and grassland management along the plateau edge

February 2015

Bramble re-growth cut back along the church yard fence line and bank

Church Hill – cutting out self-seeded Holm oak and sycamore saplings

Church Hill – a final trimming of overhanging blackthorn and ivy before the start of the bird nesting season, when hedges and scrub must be left undisturbed until the autumn

Wain’s Hill – rediscovering an old path. Believed to have been constructed in the 1980s 0r ’90s, this zigzag path was clearly gravelled and edged with boards, now rotting away.

January 2015

Blackthorn overhanging the path between Church Hill and the churchyard cut back. Arisings left to rot down near the old quarry, an interesting feature, now more visible.

The coast path on Church Hill tidied – looking east

The Friends of Poets’ Walk contribute to the start of refurbishing the Marine Lake by thoroughly clearing and sweeping the two access paths as well as the path above

A final session of scrub clearing work in St Andrew’s church yard

December 2014

Scrub clearing work in St Andrew’s church yard continues …

Clearing bramble and other scrub from old graves in St Andrew’s church yard

November 2014

Uncovering two ancient apple trees on Wain’s Hill that had become almost totally engulfed by brambles and ivy. Increased light should help the trees to recover.

Wains’ Hill – raking and sweeping slippery autumn leaves on steep paths

Church Hill – clearing fresh growth of brambles and feral raspberries from a woodland glade, first cleared of scrub last winter, and cutting out further old scrub

The Clevedon Woodcutters for Wildlife coppicing sycamore on Church Hill to return secondary woodland to a thicket habitat, after clearing bramble from adjacent grassland

October 2014

The following paragraph was included in the Clevedon Town Council Allottments Committee September meeting’s minutes, which were published in October –

On a beautiful autumn afternoon 14 volunteers cleared brambles etc. from along the churchyard fence and the rockface to allow the more delicate native species to thrive.

__________________________________

On 22nd October the North Somerset Times published this letter from a Clevedon resident.

It’s always encouraging and very rewarding to receive such positive feed-back about our work.

Thank you, Allan Andrews.

Raking off scythed grass and other vegetation on the last section of the Wain’s Hill ramparts. New shoots arising from old tree stumps on the slope were trimmed off.

The Iron Age ramparts on Wain’s Hill are scythed annually in October

Widening the access to Hack’s Way from Church Hill, and weeding the pathway

While tidying this path beside the Salthouse Flats the volunteers were ably assisted by passer-by John (in the hat), aged 94, who also shared their tea break.

September 2014

Overhanging blackthorn clipped back from the path beside St Andrew’s churchyard

The path, seats and stone steps above Marine Lake tidied in preparation for the Clevedon Tides Festival to be held on the weekend of the 21st and 22nd September

Raking up dried grass on two sections of a Church Hill slope, 3 days after scything. The grass is left to rot down in suitable gaps in the surrounding scrubland.

Late summer scything of grass on a steep Church Hill slope.

 An early September working party tea break. The Friends of Poets’ Walk celebrating the completion of three successful years of volunteering .

Raking up tractor-mown vegetation (unsuitable for baling) on Church Hill

The grass on the top of Wain’s Hill and Church Hill is cut by tractor, baled and removed annually in late summer. The borders of the formal paths are mechanically cut twice yearly by the North Somerset Council ground maintenance team.